Have you ever seen a smiley peeking out from behind a screen? The visual gag was coined after Meghan McCain twice said on MSNBC, that the Obamas deserve “an emoticon of privacy”.
The Maltese public needs all the awareness it can get when it comes to culture, environment and other forms of heritage- Tanja Cilia
Speaking about her gaffe, she later said it was merely a matter of transposing a letter (she meant modicum).
What is important is that she behaved in a way similar to many members of the media (and politicians) the world over; rather than admitting they made a mistake (or, in jargon, ‘misspoke’) they try to justify themselves by saying it was no biggie.
The tiny incident also points to another insidious trend in the media , showbusiness and politics – that nepotism will open many doors that are closed to others with far higher qualifications and ‘presence’.
It was also reported that Bristol Palin has left her short-lived career in Hollywood, and moved back to Alaska. After having a very public altercation with a man in Saddle Ranch, a Los Angeles bar, and saying she “wasn’t really into the Hollywood thing”, she says her son Tripp is going to begin kindergarten, and so they need “to settle into a routine.”
Mediocre people sometimes find themselves on broadcast and print media not because of what they know and how they carry it over, but because of other reasons. The local proof of this is two programmes on Radju Malta that must have looked fantastic on paper, but are exasperating (and that’s putting it mildly), in the production and delivery.
It-Teżi Tiegħi and Nieħdu Ħsieb Darna are two programmes each featuring a rolling list of guests, and their names are self-explanatory. In the former, guests talk about the work, studies and research that went into their thesis; the latter speaks of buildings from the foundations up.
It is obvious to everyone who listens to even a five-minute clip of either programme that all the preparations both presenters have done is being ruined by the guests who, albeit they may have a string of alphabets to their name, cannot express themselves when behind a microphone.
It is not only the obvious lack of general knowledge – for instance, one of the foremost journalists of the island referred continuously to J K Rowling as a man – but even attitude and delivery are second-rate.
The same goes for newscasters who read bulletins as if they were reciting a poem, or worse, reading an instalment of a novel, Ġorġ Peresso style.
It is actually painful, not to mention frustrating, to have to listen to sentences punctuated by pauses and repetitions after every three words. It is, I dare say, impossible to record these people speaking coherently, because the person at the controls desk would no doubt leave the studio after 10 minutes of ‘Cut! Cut! Cut!’
I would suggest that when programmes are being selected for broadcasts on what is, after all, the station of the nation, more care is taken to screen potential guests as well as the scripts submitted by the presenters, and the presenters themselves.
It is useless relying on the knowledge and education of guests to carry a programme. It is bad enough that TV viewers have to put up with presenters and guests fiddling with their hair and clothes and otherwise fidgeting.
On radio, where the pictures are supposed to be better and clearer, we expect much better.
A case that proves the above is a programme presented by Paul Pace on Wednesdays at 10 a.m. and repeated on Saturdays at 11 a.m., on Campus FM: Riċerka fl-Edukazzjoni Ambjentali. Dr Pace and his guests also talk about their thesis – and here the common thread is the link to environmental education.
Sheryl Green’s interview stood out from the others because it was based on sustainable development awareness and policymaking in Malta. Green targeted Maltese policy makers – MPs, local councillors and green leaders in non-formal education.
Again, as in the case of Nisġa, this programme does not have a repeat on Radju Malta, which is a pity. Heaven knows the Maltese public needs all the awareness it can get when it comes to culture, environment and other forms of heritage.
Another team that does not cut corners in research, and does not pull its punches, is the one of Kontrattakk. In fact, this line-up is the only one which has consistently given pole position to all Maltese athletes, whatever the circumstances that would have put them in the limelight.
This evening, in Kontrattakk (TVM 9.45 p.m.) producer Sandro Micallef will also be taking a look at the local sport portals and their main stories. But the highlight of the programme will be live links from the Milan derby.
Kontrattakk viewers are always given the opportunity to use the live televoting system, or the Facebook page, or e-mail (kontrattakk@tvm.com.mt) to voice their opinions.
• Meanwhile, the Public Broadcasting Service and the Labour Party are once again at loggerheads with regard to recruitment issues.
It is ironic that the very same people who used to work at PBS but are not on the PL wage-lists are taking exception to the fact that there are what they allege to be political appointments in strategic positions at PBS.
There is a list doing the round of the social sites that enumerates the people who have some connection – be it ever so tenuous – to the Nationalist Party. This list raises a lot more questions than it purports to answer.
• The word is that the cult-status local drama, Solitaire, is about to hit the cinema screen – to add ‘with a bang’ would be superfluous, given the subject matter of the series.
Plans are for the première to be held during Christmastide this year.
Mark Doneo and his team will head this executive production of One. And the idea is to stretch the station’s limited resources to create a platform for feature films; an extended Stejjer Qosra, as it were.
television@timesofmalta.com